Published: Thursday, November 29, 2012 at 7:50 p.m.

Last Modified: Thursday, November 29, 2012 at 7:50 p.m.

Louisiana's first lady Supriya Jindal visited Houma's Oakshire Elementary School on Thursday to deliver four new interactive white boards her foundation donated to the school.

Her husband, Gov. Bobby Jindal, is pushing for changes to the state's education system, especially looking to boost education for math and science.

Supriya Jindal, an engineer, is using the interactive computer screens to do just that.

“Do you think Drew Brees uses science and math when he plays football? No? Well, let's think about it for a minute,” she told a class of first graders.

Supriya Jindal went on to explain the math and physics involved in a long-bomb throw and the engineering that went into making lightweight but sturdy helmets.

“Science and math are everywhere,” she said. “That's why it's so important that you guys stay interested in it.”

The four boards the Supriya Jindal Foundation donated to Oakshire with money from Walmart are enough to get one in front of every first grader at the school. Supriya Jindal said her foundation specifically targets young students because research shows they lose interest in math and science careers around the fourth grade — something her husband's administration has been trying to change.

“You look at what all the kids are doing at home, and it's all on the computer, all on the Internet,” she said. “But most of our classrooms still have chalkboards and chalk. You're just not going to engage them as well that way.”

Supriya Jindal lead one classroom lesson using the boards to show how they work. Playing a “Jeopardy”-style game, students answered counting and basic math questions using individual remotes.

To the kids, the lesson was a game, but the computer was quietly tracking each student's answers.

That means teachers can go back and figure out what they need to focus on more while saving them time spent grading and the embarrassment to students.

This is Supriya Jindal's second visit to Terrebonne Parish. She also delivered “smart boards” to Mulberry Elementary more than a year ago.

Oakshire's Principal Dawn Fleniken said the technology is “wonderful.”

“The kids took to it immediately, and they love it,” Fleniken said. “I've never seen anything get every student engaged the way this does.”

Supriya Jindal's foundation has donated white boards to about 320 classrooms across Louisiana. But the boards are expensive — a most basic system costs about $1,300, according the website of Promethean, the company that makes them.

A more complex system that includes clickers and other technology — like the ones at Oakshire — are more expensive.

So, as schools struggle with tight budgets, most of the classrooms in the state remain in the chalk and marker era.

“We want to get to a point where we have this in every classroom in the state,” Supriya Jindal said. “These are the first steps toward that goal.”

Staff Writer Matthew Albright can be reached at 448-7635 or at matthew.albright@dailycomet.com.

<p>Louisiana's first lady Supriya Jindal visited Houma's Oakshire Elementary School on Thursday to deliver four new interactive white boards her foundation donated to the school.</p><p>Her husband, Gov. Bobby Jindal, is pushing for changes to the state's education system, especially looking to boost education for math and science. </p><p>Supriya Jindal, an engineer, is using the interactive computer screens to do just that.</p><p>“Do you think Drew Brees uses science and math when he plays football? No? Well, let's think about it for a minute,” she told a class of first graders. </p><p>Supriya Jindal went on to explain the math and physics involved in a long-bomb throw and the engineering that went into making lightweight but sturdy helmets.</p><p>“Science and math are everywhere,” she said. “That's why it's so important that you guys stay interested in it.”</p><p>The four boards the Supriya Jindal Foundation donated to Oakshire with money from Walmart are enough to get one in front of every first grader at the school. Supriya Jindal said her foundation specifically targets young students because research shows they lose interest in math and science careers around the fourth grade — something her husband's administration has been trying to change.</p><p>“You look at what all the kids are doing at home, and it's all on the computer, all on the Internet,” she said. “But most of our classrooms still have chalkboards and chalk. You're just not going to engage them as well that way.”</p><p>Supriya Jindal lead one classroom lesson using the boards to show how they work. Playing a “Jeopardy”-style game, students answered counting and basic math questions using individual remotes.</p><p>To the kids, the lesson was a game, but the computer was quietly tracking each student's answers. </p><p>That means teachers can go back and figure out what they need to focus on more while saving them time spent grading and the embarrassment to students.</p><p>This is Supriya Jindal's second visit to Terrebonne Parish. She also delivered “smart boards” to Mulberry Elementary more than a year ago. </p><p>Oakshire's Principal Dawn Fleniken said the technology is “wonderful.”</p><p>“The kids took to it immediately, and they love it,” Fleniken said. “I've never seen anything get every student engaged the way this does.”</p><p>Supriya Jindal's foundation has donated white boards to about 320 classrooms across Louisiana. But the boards are expensive — a most basic system costs about $1,300, according the website of Promethean, the company that makes them. </p><p>A more complex system that includes clickers and other technology — like the ones at Oakshire — are more expensive.</p><p>So, as schools struggle with tight budgets, most of the classrooms in the state remain in the chalk and marker era.</p><p>“We want to get to a point where we have this in every classroom in the state,” Supriya Jindal said. “These are the first steps toward that goal.”</p><p>Staff Writer Matthew Albright can be reached at 448-7635 or at matthew.albright@dailycomet.com.</p>